CD Designs Blog

    How much ice do you need…before you call in an ice breaker?

    We’ve already talked in previous concrete driveway blogs about methods you can employ to de-ice your pattern imprinted concrete driveway or patio. These are easily manageable for a small residential setting. But think about what it would be like if you had to keep a whole road system de-iced and operational?

    For example, a twenty mile section of the M8 Motorway in Scotland was completely frozen under compacted snow and ice last winter, leaving hundreds of motorists stranded. This kind of problem becomes more commonplace in the UK each year, with increased numbers of cars on the roads, and harsh winters to contend with.

    The two maintenance firms that deal with the majority of Scotland’s roads, Amey and BEAR Scotland, have stockpiled a total of 52,000 tonnes of salt and other de-icing material to ready themselves for this year’s winter. So you know if you leave your pattern imprinted concrete driveway this winter and head out on to the roads of Scotland the agencies should have you covered.

    And it doesn’t stop there — a gargantuan icebreaker machine has been been shipped over from Scandinavia to join the hundreds of snow ploughs, gritters and other vehicles that will wage war on Scotland’s ice problem this winter. We’ll be rooting for them!

    Post Date:

    12th November 2011

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    How Do (or rather did) You Make the Most of Your Patio In Summer

    The great British summer. The phrase brings up heartwarming images of endless lazy days in sunny glades and picturesque parks or by riverbanks, sipping Pimms or Cider, eating Strawberries and Barbecued food and listening to the cricket on the radio. Or alternatively, sitting inside a grubby caravan, looking solemnly out the window and wishing it would stop raining.

    Stiff upper lip, old chap. Whatever your situation is, you’ll be sure to have a great summer, and regularly enjoy some quality time in the comfort of your own patio, especially if you take some of our advice on board!

    1. Whether your pattern imprinted concrete patio is a huge sprawling affair or fairly compact, you should choose furniture and other accessories to suit – make sure it doesn’t become too crowded. A little feng shui goes a long way, and you need space to breathe.
    2. Make your patio the ultimate place for relaxation – get yourself a comfy sun lounger to chill out and read or enjoy the sun. And a stylish wooden table and chairs set can bring the whole family together beautifully for a meal, a nice chat and a drink, or to play a game together.
    3. Al fresco dining is a lovely way to feed everyone – getting some fresh air really can add to the dining experience. Also, why not cook AND eat outside? Get yourself a mobile BBQ unit or even build a brick BBQ into your patio.
    4. Gardening is a great summer pass time – why not have create some beautiful flower beds around your patio, and spice it up with some hanging baskets, trestles or climbers?
    5. Water! On a hot summers day, get out the paddling pool, the hosepipe and the water pistols. This is one fight that won’t spoil your day!
    6. You should also consider shade carefully – both to get out of really hot sun, and to hold off the rain when the weather adopts a more typically British flavour. A nice big parasol will do the trick nicely, or perhaps a gazebo? A parasol can fit into the centre of many tables, and a gazebo could be put up when you fear the rain, and taken down again afterwards.

    Post Date:

    10th September 2011

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    Zero Energy Homes

    In a world of soaring energy bills, it’s great to know that scientists are finding future ways for us to dodge the utility provider’s monthly reminder letter.

    Teams across the world are busy creating prototypes for low and even zero energy homes which will herald a new era for the way we live. To first inspection, many of these designs look reassuringly familiar – brick structures, gardens, pattern imprinted concrete driveways in the front yard, patios in the back etc – but others look decidedly futuristic and bizarre. However, the lure of an eco solution to wasted and expensive energy is an attractive one indeed!

    In Vision Zero has been developed by Dow Chemical. It looks like a regular home, with a green lawn, large windows and a reassuringly familiar pattern imprinted concrete driveway, but it is a net-zero energy home, using geothermal heating technology and cooling, solar energy, LED lights and lamps.

    The Green Tomorrow House by Samsung is a futuristic low-build no carbon house which generates energy without using any electricity or gas, with technologies such as landscaping and bio amalgamates, eco-friendly fishing materials and clever insulation.

    The Solar Decathlon Sustainable House looks more like a log cabin, but with a very youthful feel and integrated in and outdoor living approach. It uses rainwater recycling, thermal systems and even has a green grass couch outside!

    The Icynene Integral to Connecticut’s First Net Zero Energy Home has been certified to the highest energy rating available, and uses no fossil fuels or electricity.

    Villa Akarp looks decidedly Scandinavian, and indeed is the brainchild of a Swedish Inventor – Karin Adalberth. This house actually provides a positive net energy which can be sold back to the grid, and heavily combines technologies to recover, conserve and generate energy.

    Designed by Michelle Kaufmann, the Zero Energy Prefab looks incredibly modern and cutting edge, and includes photovoltaic panels to gather solar power, and also make use of gray and rainwater collection. The house is so light on the grid that the meter actually spins backwards during light energy demand periods!

    The Truro Net-Zero Energy Beach Home is a wonderfully futuristic, grand large home, custom designed by Boston based firm ZeroEnergy design with eight bathrooms and seven bedrooms! It uses a battery back-up and light consultant for maximum efficiency. No fossil fuels are used, and energy is automatically shut down in unoccupied areas of the house.

    Microsoft are also in on the act with their New American Home – an incredible looking structure which is entirely solar powered and filled with gadgets and technology.

    The Lumenhaus by Virginia Tech has a decidedly space-age appearance and uses solar energy, radiant heating and passive energy systems, along with an advanced shading system.

    Post Date:

    29th July 2011

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    Environmental Concerns At CD Designs

    Renewable Energy; Our Future

    Renewable Energy; Our Future

    The environment around us means a lot to the proud staff at CD Designs. We don’t just concern ourselves with the current need for creating beautiful, hardwearing exteriors for your home out of pattern imprinted concrete – we also think about the future, and what impact our work will have on the world around us. We try to make our materials and processes as eco-friendly as possible.
    It is increasingly more important to think about the environment going forward – not only are pollution, landfill and other harmful waste sources building up to critical levels, and sources of fossil fuels being ever depleted, but high levels of global warming are causing irreversible climatic changes that could spell a grim future for all of us.

    To combat such problems, we are relying more and more on renewable energy sources, but we need to convince governments (including our own) to start creating policies that favour large scale renewable energy adoption, putting major financial resources behind such policies, and working with power companies to adopt renewable energy resources such as wind, solar, bioenergy and wave power.

    A recent report by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change estimates that renewable energy resources will account for more than 80 percent of the worlds’ needs by the year 2050. There is infinite potential for us to harness renewable energy sources, provided we collectively care, at a governmental level, nationally and internationally. So join CD Designs in helping out things for the future: talk to your MP about these issues, and try to reuse renewable resources and energy, and eco-friendly processes wherever possible in your work and play.

    Image by Brooke Raymond

    Post Date:

    20th July 2011

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    A Life-Sized Hot Wheels Track: More Than A Novelty, It’s A World Record Breaker!

    Do you remember Hot Wheels, concrete fans? those awesome-but-compact toy cars, featuring lots of brightly coloured super vehicles ranging from monster trucks to drag racers, which had lots of crazy stunt tracks to race around? Well, creators Mattel have really landed on a monster of a PR stunt!

    They set up a giant orange track, and created a seriously rock and roll hot wheels car – done out just like its toy cousins – to hurtle down it with world-famous stunt driver Tanner Foust behind the wheel. The aim was to break the world record for longest jump by a four-wheeled vehicle, set at 301 feet by Johnny Greaves in 2009.

    The sheer riskiness and pomp of the stunt was enough to get a whole stadium full of pulses racing at the 100th anniversary Indianapolis 500 event in the US, which the world record attempt provided the opening excitement for before the race started. Tanner sped down the near-vertical 10 storey drop at the start of the track, before smashing the previous record, setting the new bar at 332 feet. He blew every one away – the car didn’t even touch the landing track, but sailed past it completely, with Tanner bringing the car to an easy-looking stop moments later.

    Now I can hear you thinking “which Toys R Us do I go to if I want to pick up one of those sets?” Keep dreaming, for now at least.

    Post Date:

    8th July 2011

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    Complete Driveway Designs Ltd

    The Green Building, Newton Street, Walmersley, Bury, BL9 5HB
    E:info@northwest-driveways.co.uk
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